Trolley-catcher



G. F. RANDALL.

TROLLEY CATCHER.

Patented 001;. 13, 1896.

co. puo'rournou wAsumm-ou o c (No Model.)

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MW @L Y 5 Z I T A M@ F i W NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES FREDERICK RANDALL, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

TROLLEY-CATCH ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 569,352, dated October 13, 1896.

. Application filed February 11, 1895. Serial No. 538,016. (No model.)

To (LZZ 20/101121 it may CON/06TH.

Be it known that I, CHARLES FREDERICK RANDALL, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Denver, in the county of Arapahoe and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in 'lrolley-Oatchers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the let ters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in devices adapted to take up the slack of the trolley-rope and to prevent the trolley-pole from ilyin g up unduly when the trolley-wheel slips off the wire in overhead electric-railway systems.

The improvement consists of the features hereinafter described and claimed, all of which will be fully understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which is illustrated an embodiment thereof.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the metal tube or casing inclosing the operating parts of the device. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the device, exhibiting all of the working parts. Fig. is an end view of the tube or casing. Fig. at is a top view of the cap which covers the tube. In this View the opening through which passes the trolleyrope is shown. Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken through the adjusting weight contained in the tube and carrying dogs adapted to engage ratchets located in grooves at each side of the weight. Fig. 6 is a top view of an attachment for the hood of the car.

Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4., and 6 are drawn to a quarter scale, or one-fourth of the normal size, while Fig. 5 is drawn full size.

The same reference-characters indicate like parts or elements throughout the several views.

Let A designate the metal tube containing the mechanism. This tube occupies an upright or vertical position and is attached to the platform of the car bya band R, passing around the tube and screwed firmly to the top of the dash-rail. It is also provided with a foot 0, screwed to the platform of the car.

As used with my improved device, the trolley-rope E E is composed of two parts connected bya coupling D. One part is located within the tube A, while the other part eX- tends upward therefrom to the trolley-pole. The coupling D is attached to the part within the tube, passes through the cap 13, and is connected by a snap with the part of the rope outside of the tube. the attachment N, (see Fig. 6,) which prevents the rope from swaying from side to side through force of wind other cause. The rope is long enough to allow the trolley-wheel to rise to the highest wire on the system.

The rope E E is securely fastened in a thinnble S, attached to the cap B, and passes down and around a pulley F on the weight G, (which weight is provided with two pulleys, only one being shown in the drawings,) thence upward and around the pulley T, attached to the cap 13, thence down and around a second pulley on the weight G, and thence up through the opening P in the cap, where it is connected with the rope part above by the use of the coupling D, as above described. As the trol ley-wheel rises and falls with the variation in the height of the trolley-wire the weight G takes up the slack rope contained in the tube A and gives it out as required.

For catching and holding the trolley-pole when the trolley-wheel accidentally leaves the wire the ratchets L L and the mechanism carried by the weight G are employed.

' L L L L are ratchets extending the full length of the tube A and acting as guides for the weight G, which has a groove cut in each side to receive them.

The weight G consists of two parts designated in the drawings by the numerals 1 and 2. These parts are uneqal in gravity, part 1 being the smaller and having lugs for holding the two pulleys F, which are journaled therein and work side by side. The part 1 is attached to the part 2 by a rod J, which passes through an opening in 1 and is fastened by a nut.

H is a spiral spring surrounding the rod J, the opening in the weight being sufficiently large to receive the spring, whose upper extremity engages a shoulder on the weight, while its lower end bears against a shoulder on the rod. 1

This rope passes through I I designate dogs hinged to the weight in such a manner that when the two parts of the weight are separated as far as the spring H will allow the dogs are drawn upward and forced outward into the ratchets L L. The spring H is so adjusted that with the ordinary rise and fall of the rope E E the weight G will move upward and downward without obstruction. A sudden upward jerk upon the rope, however, as when the trolley-wheel flies off the wire, draws the lighter part 1 of the weight G far enough away from the heavier part 2 to compress the spring H and force the dogs I I into the ratchets L L. The tension of the trolley-pole, or its tendency to move upward, then holds the dogs in position in the ratchets until the trolley-wheelis again placed on the wire, when spring H expands and draws back the dogs I I, after which the weight performs its function in adjusting the trolley-rope, as before described.

The attachment N, heretofore alluded to, consists of a yoke attached to the hood M of the car. This yoke comprises two rearwardlyextending arms whose extremities approach each other and are then turned slightly outward. The yoke is thus open in the rear to allow the rope to pass in and out when manipulated by the person in charge of the car. Its construct-ion is such, however, that the rope is not liable to slip out by accident. This yoke allows the rope considerable play, but at the same time prevents the trolleypole from swaying unduly from side to side.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. The combination with the tube or casing,

of the two-part weight located therein, a spring-held rod connecting the two parts of the Weight, a dog hinged to the rod, a ratchet located within the tube in suitable proximity to the weight, and a rope or similar connection between the weight and the trolley-pole, substantially as described.

2. The combination with the tube or casing attached to the car, of the two-part weight, the yielding connection whereby the parts of the weight are held in operative relation, the dogs carried by the weight, the ratehets adapted to engage the dogs, and the rope connecting the weight and the trolley-pole, substantially as described.

The combination with the tube or casing attached to the car, of the two-part weight located in the tube, the yielding connection between the two parts of the weight, the dogs carried by the weight, the ratehets adapted to engage the dogs, the pulleys attached to the tube and to the weight, and the rope attached to the tube, engaging the pulleys and connected with the trolley-pole, substantially as described.

4. The combination with the tube or casing of a weight located therein, a spring-held rod movably attached to the weight, a dog hinged to the rod, a ratchet located within the tube in suitable proximity to the weight, and a rope or similar connection between the weight and the trolley-pole, substantially as described.

CHARLES FREDERICK RANDALL.

lVitnesses:

ELIZABETH RANDALL, PETER RICE RANDALL. 

